Milleneufcentquatrevingtquatre: Ties that Bind

Their native France may be a mecca for the classic silk scarf, but Milleneufcentquatrevingtquatre designers Amelie Charroin and Marie Colin-Madan’s found themselves singing a love song to America with their new collection of printed silk scarves, with designs inspired by Alexander Calder mobiles and color combinations worn by Chairlift singer Caroline Polachek in the video for “Amanaemonesia.” “It’s true that we followed a lot of American blogs during the development of the collection, so maybe it emanates an air of America—at least our own feelings of an American lifestyle,” says Charroin. The Hortus collection, as this season is called, is a wash of pale peaches, greens and watery blues depicting flattened compositions of potted succulents as seen through the grid of a modernist window, a rock garden phosphorescing at night, or an abstract mobile fixed in space. But whichever red, white and blue flag they’re nodding to, one thing remains true from season to season: Charroin and Colin-Madan use drawing, painting and photo montage for their handmade silkscreens, which are then transferred onto 51 square inches of fine silk. “We live in the [home] of silk and we have the chance to work closely with the best French silk manufacturers. So each piece is woven, printed and shaped in our region,” says Charroin. It’s Hermès for the Tumblr generation, and anyone can wear it with pride.